Black Dragons
by Miss Lilianae
Summary: The world is at war. While all sides fight for freedom and their right to exist a mercenary faction fights for their personal freedom, and a bit of coin. Join the Black Dragons as they adventure, quest, and defeat monsters, governments, and even mighty dragons!
1. Fateful Union

Black Dragons  
Chapter 1: Fateful Union

Disclaimer: I do not own Dungeons & Dragons

It was a dark and stormy day. The wind howled like the souls of the dead, and rain came down in fistfuls. The small, rickety tavern of the Boar's Head rattled in the wind as the patrons inside huddled near the fire and kept a close eye on their drinks. The door suddenly flew open and every eye in the tavern looked to see what had happened. A large, broad figure stood cloaked in the doorway, it stepped through and firmly grasped the door before struggling to push it closed. After it latched back into place the figure turned to the barkeep.

"You may want to bar that with something," A deep, resonating, male voice said from the cloak.

The barkeep nodded and two younger boys near the door lifted an empty table and placed it so that the door would hit it and only open enough to let somebody through.

The figured strolled through the bar without concern, despite the fact that every eye was on him. He sat down at the bar and threw back the hood from his head. Most of the people inside the tavern were farm folk, had lived there their entire lives and didn't see anything too fantastic or exotic, and that was why there was a sudden gasp of awe in the room.

The man was large, and his body covered in light-black scales. He appeared young, you could say, his brow was still small and what horns he did have were miniscule as they ran the bony ridges around his face. His eyes were a bright yellow with black, slit-like pupils. He drew a hand out from under the cloak and the patrons saw it was also covered in black scales and the nails were more like claws. He laid down a gold piece on the counter.

"However much that'll get me of your cheapest beer," The scaled man said.

The barkeep nodded and took the gold piece, he went into the back to fetch the drink and once he was out of site he bit the gold coin and tried to bend it with his teeth, the piece was genuine. He shrugged and pocketed the coin with the rest before fetching the man his drink.

"So, what is a dragonborn doing here?" A voice asked that broke the silence.

Every head in the tavern turned to the speaker, a man sitting on the barstool one over from the newcomer.

"I am a simple traveler, passing through on my way to my next destination," He replied.

"And where might that be?"

The Dragonborn looked to see who he was speaking with and stopped for a brief second when he realized that the man's legs dangled in the air from the barstool. He had a short goatee and his hair was kept in thick braids that ran down his back. He wore a suit of scale armor with a few vestments adorning it. A large hammer rested next to his chair, it's double head resting on the wooden floor of the tavern.

"I… do not know," the Dragonborn replied after his brief pause

"What are you looking at? Ain't never seen a dwarf before?" he asked.

"I have, I served with a few back in the military,"

"You were a soldier? Then what are you doing here? There's a war going on you know," The dwarf looked to the Dragonborn now.

"I am well aware, but I retired a long time ago, and have since been traveling between nations. I'm actually not from around here,"

"Well, you better get out of here quick if you know what's good for you," The dwarf broke the gaze and returned to his mug, "Soldiers frequent these taverns, trying to find enemy spies. Don't want them to mistake you for one do you?"

"No, that is something I would rather avoid, thank you for the warning…"

"Harbek," The dwarf replied, his voice slightly echoed by the mug he was about to down.

"Harbek, thank you,"

At this point the barkeep returned and laid down a keg on his back counter before popping it open and filling a mug for the Dragonborn. He took it with a simple 'thanks' and began to drink. Silence returned to the tavern and once the initial wonder of seeing a Dragonborn had worn off the bar goers returned to their drinks. It was quiet again, the only sounds were the crackling fire, the wind howling outside, the rain pattering on the windows, and the occasional cough.

After some time the door slammed into the table, stopping it from hitting the wall and two men entered through the slight crack, the second one turned and pushed the door closed. They both scanned the room and when their eyes alighted on the Dragonborn they puffed up their chests and approached him.

He, like everyone else in the tavern, turned his gaze to the door when it opened. He saw their gazes rest on him, their chests puff out as they tried to look intimidating, and their gait as they approached him. He smiled slightly and put his mug on the bar.

"Can I help you?" he asked them.

"State your name and business here," One of the men said.

These two men were soldiers, their armor and weapons attested to that. Likely a patrol that came through the area now and again, most of the locals knew them by face and while they normally wouldn't pay any attention to them after the door was closed, the confrontation with the Dragonborn was keeping their interest.

"I am Kimbatuul Arjhan, a traveler in these lands," The Dragonborn replied.

"Well Kim, mind telling us what your 'traveling' entails," One of the soldiers sneered at him.

"Actually, my known name is Arjhan, it is custom among my people to introduce with our surname first," Arjhan answered.

"Whatever, what are you doing here?" The soldier asked.

"As I said, I am a traveler, I'm just stopping here to get out of the storm and to enjoy a nice, warm, mug of beer," Arjhan answered.

"Stand down boys, he's with me," Harbek chimed in from beside them.

The soldiers turned to him and opened their mouths to say something when they stopped, Harbek was dangling a small icon that hung from a chain around his neck. The icon was a hand and wrist wrapped around a hammer as it lifted from an anvil, sparks still flying off from the collision.

"Sorry father," They both put their hands together and bowed.

"Think nothing of it, now if you don't mind leave us be so we can enjoy our drinks," Harbek told them.

They nodded and apologized quietly to Arjhan before ordering two beers and sitting down at a table by themselves.

Arjhan turned to Harbek, "You're a priest?"

"What, didn't expect the drunk dwarf to be a holy man?" he asked, a slight chuckle in his voice.

"You could say that," Arjhan told him as he turned back to face the bar and picked up his mug.

The tavern once again assumed its uniform silence. After a half hour Arjhan lifted another gold coin from his cloak and laid it on the table, he looked to the barkeep who perked up.

"A room please," Arjhan told him.

The man nodded and approached, counting out seven silver pieces and handing them to Arjhan before taking the gold into his pocket.

He pulled a key off a ring on his belt and handed it to Arjhan, "First door on the left sir,"

Arjhan nodded and stood up, making his way to the staircase that was situated on the left side from the door. He retired for the evening and the bar eventually emptied out. Harbek later collected his hammer and went upstairs. He heard some snoring coming from the first left door. Shaking his head he entered the door on the right side and entered his room. Taking off his armor and laying his hammer on his bed with him he curled up and was fast asleep and soon snoring as loudly as Arjhan was from the other room.


	2. Sneak Attack

Black Dragons  
Chapter 2: Sneak Attack

Disclaimer: I do not own Dungeons & Dragons

The next morning, the sun shone brightly in the clear blue sky. Arjhan and Harbek awoke at the same time and went through a similar routine, stretching their arms toward the sky before doing a quick warm-up routine. After they had finished stretching they donned their armor and clothing and buckled their weapons to their respective places before exiting their rooms. As they opened the doors they came face-to-face with one another. A brief nod and a motion for the other to go first, which resulted in a look of confusion from both of them.

"Go ahead, I can wait," Arjhan told him.

"No, you go first, I insist," Harbek said.

"No no, I couldn't, you should descend first,"

Harbek growled his reply "No, you go first,"

"Listen, I'm just trying to be polite,"

"As am I!" Harbek shouted loudly.

"Oi! That's enough of that," A voice called to them from the bottom of the stairs.

The two looked down to see the soldiers from last night.

"Kimbatuul Arjhan, you are hereby under arrest," One of them said.

"What? On what charges?" Arjhan asked incredulously.

"You have been discovered as a spy from the Empire," The other soldier answered.

"I am no such thing,"

"Calm down boys, I said he's with me," Harbek chimed in.

"I'm sorry father, but even your influence cannot save him. He's wanted by the baron personally,"

Harbek looked to Arjhan who sighed before heading down the stairs to the awaiting cuffs of the soldiers. They shackled his arms and unbuckled the sword at his belt and the shield from his back. They then led him out of the tavern and down the road. Harbek followed a few paces behind them until they were walking down the road, where Harbek remained outside the door of the tavern.

"Close the door would ya? It's getting cold in here!" A voice called from inside.

Harbek turned to see a cloaked figure approaching the main bar, he couldn't have been more than a few feet tall, likely shorter than Harbek.

Harbek nodded as he walked back inside and closed the door behind him. He approached the bar and clamored up onto the stool, setting his hammer down beside him. He watched as the barkeep gave a plate of eggs and a glass of water to the stranger. He simply took a mug of ale.

"The sun's not even high in the sky yet," The stranger commented as he saw the alcohol.

"It's drinking time somewhere in the world," Harbek said as he tilted back and downed the mug.

"So, what was the deal with that Dragonborn those soldiers led out of here?"

"Apparently he was some imperial spy, nonsense is what it is. The man's a warrior, doesn't matter where he comes from," Harbek slammed his mug down on the bar and got a refill.

"Well, you seem to like him,"

"He gave me a good vibe, that's all. It's too late now, the Baron's got him,"

"Actually, I may have a way to get him out,"

Harbek turned to the figure and finally got a full look at the man. He was wearing a suit of leather armor under his cloak and a belt of daggers was strapped across his chest.

"You're not some kind of criminal are you?" Harbek asked.

"Criminal? Me? Never! I'm insulted that you would insinuate such a thing,"

"Can I get your name then?"

"Corrin, Corrin the Fleet,"

"The fleet?"

"I'm quick, on my feet that is," Corrin added, as an afterthought.

Harbek nodded slowly, "Alright Corrin, what's your plan to get him out then? If I may ask,"

"You may," Corrin answered smartly, "You see, the Baron keeps all non-local prisoners in a special dungeon at the top of a tower, all we'd have to do is scale said tower and lower a rope down for your friend,"

"Nope, not happening," Harbek answered aggressively.

"What? Why not?"

"A dwarf doesn't leave the ground!"

Corrin looked Harbek up and down as if realizing that he was talking to a dwarf.

"Fair, then you can keep watch,"

"So you are a criminal,"

"No, I just know certain things," Corrin said innocently.

Harbek sighed as he downed his mug and got up to leave, "Well, if we're going to do this let's get to it,"

"Now wait a minute!" Corrin called to him as he spun on his stool, "You can't go scaling a tower in the middle of the day, you'll be spotted for sure!"

"Didn't say I was scaling the tower," Harbek said as he grabbed his hammer and shouldered it before making his way toward the door.

"Father, your drinks," The barkeep called after him.

"Add it to my tab!"

Corrin sighed as he dumped a pair of gold pieces on the table and took off after Harbek. The barkeep bit into one of the pieces and it bent easily in his jaw.

"Hey!" He called after them.

An hour later Corrin and Harbek were an hour down the road toward the Baron's castle.

"So, you're some kind of Criminal? Thief? Rogue?"

"Scoundrel is what most people call my profession, I prefer to think of it as a… businessman,"

"Businessman? Seriously?"

"Do you have a better idea?" Corrin asked.

"No, no, Businessman sounds good, it'll help us get in the door,"

"Door? What door?" Corrin asked.

"That one," Harbek unshouldered his hammer and pointed at the large, wooden cross-hatched gate of a castle.

The structure was large, square, and made of stone. A small ring of water ran around the sides of the building with a wooden bridge over the water in front of the gate. The land outside the castle was clear on all sides for a good quarter mile.

"I don't think your tower idea would've worked, we'd have been seen from a long ways off,"

"Not if you travel by night and know what you're doing," Corrin replied as the pair approached the castle.

As the two came up to the gate they were stopped by two soldiers.

"Halt! State your business!" One of the called.

Harbek looked to Corrin who sighed, "I'm here to see the Baron about our trade agreement, I scheduled an appointment?"

Corrin sounded so sure of himself, Harbek believed he actually had business in the castle. The guards looked at each other before nodding and opening a small side door to let them through.

"Thank you, come along father, we don't want to be late to the meeting,"

Harbek took a moment to realize Corrin was referring to him as his father and he nodded with a gruff grunt before following inside.

The pair were now safely inside the walls and looked around, confused on where to go next.

"Where's this tower of yours?" Harbek asked him.

"There," Corrin pointed to one of the four towers that were positioned at the corners where the walls met.

"How do you know that's the right one?" Harbek asked.

"Just trust me will you?" Corrin replied testily.

"Fine, fine, just hard to trust a man who makes his living by stealing from others," Harbek shouldered his hammer again as he followed Corrin toward the door leading into the tower.

As they approached a couple of guards happened to exit from the tower and run into the pair.

"Can we help you?" One of them asked.

"Oh, we had business with the Baron in this tower," Corrin replied slickly.

"The Baron isn't in this tower…" The first guard replied.

"Oh, he said to meet us here at the top floor," Corrin sounded concerned.

"That doesn't make any sense, this is the prison tower," The second guard said.

Corrin clicked his tongue against teeth and in a blur of motion he drew a pair of daggers from his belt and cut the chest of the first guard. The man gasped in pain as he dropped to the ground. The second guard turned to Corrin but was met with Harbek's hammer coming around in a heavy-handed swing that hit him in the side and buckled his armor. He collapsed on top of his friend.

"Come on, we need to get these two inside before someone sees us," Corrin said as he sheathed his daggers and drug the second guard inside.

Harbek shook his head and slipped his hammer into a loop on his back before grabbing the first guard and dragging him inside behind Corrin. Once the two bodies were hidden and the door closed Corrin looked up the spiraling staircase that ran the length of the circular tower.

"So, Arjhan's up there?" Harbek walked up with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Yup, should be anyway… ready for some stairs?" Corrin asked.

Harbek spat on the ground with a frustrated grunt.


	3. All Under Control

Black Dragons  
Chapter 3: All Under Control

Disclaimer: I do not own Dungeons & Dragons

Corrin leapt up the last step of the stairway leading up to the top of the tower. As he landed he gave himself a short nod before turning to tell Harbek something, but as he opened his mouth he realized that the Dwarf was missing.

"Father?" He asked innocently.

Harbek's arm shot up from below the stairs and slammed into the pavement leaving a few spider-web cracks in the wooden floorboards as his fingers dug into them. He pulled himself up onto the landing with a heave and a sigh.

"Are you alright?" Corrin asked as he leaned over his companion.

"Dwarves. Don't. Do. Stairs," Harbek grunted out between breaths.

"Dwarves don't seem to do a lot of things," Corrin told him with a simple pat on his head before he wandered over to the nearest door. He put his ear to the lock and began to try to focus his hearing.

"I've told you already, I don't know anything about the war. I'm a simple traveler," Arjhan's voice echoed through the lock.

"Sure, sure, and I'm the Baron himself," another voice replied before the lash of a whip echoed through the door.

"Your friend doesn't too comfortable in there," Corrin whispered back to Harbek as he wandered over having recovered from the stairs.

"Well then let's get him out," Harbek said as he swung his hammer experimentally.

"We can't just break in and bust him out," Corrin replied, "We'd draw far too much attention, perhaps a more subtle attempt?"

"Subtle Shmubtle," Harbek said as he pushed Corrin aside and gripped his hammer with both hands.

"Wait!" Corrin shouted as he held out a hand to stop him.

It was too late, Harbek swung his hammer in a devastating arc that shattered the door into splinters.

"Who in the?" Harbek immediately spotted a figure wearing black leather and a mask with a whip in his hand.

"Harbek?" Arjhan asked as he spotted the priest standing the door.

"The one and only," Harbek said as he planted his hammer head on the floor and leaned against it.

"Friends of yours?" The torturer asked Arjhan.

"Could say that," Corrin chimed in as he poked his head in the doorway.

Arjhan gave Harbek an odd look but the Dwarf shook his head.

"I'm going to be taking my friend back now if ya don't mind," Harbek said looking at the torturer.

"I'm afraid I do, the Baron has given me direct orders to extract any information from this monster that could help the war effort,"

Harbek sighed as he readied his hammer, "Obviously ya haven't been listening to him. He's not a soldier or a spy,"

"And you obviously haven't been listening to the screams I've been getting out of him," The Torturer said as he cracked his whip.

Harbek raised a brow at the man, was he trying to be intimidating? The torturer growled as he sent his whip at Harbek. Corrin sped past him through the doorway, his twin knives appearing in his hands again as he leapt into the air, slicing the whip cleanly with his blades, the head of the piece fell to the floorboards harmlessly while the now shortened weapon whistled through the air a few feet in front of Corrin.

"What the-?"

Harbek took his chance as the Torturer examined the whip, rushing forward in a charge he stopped a few feet short of the man before bringing his hammer around with increased momentum. Slamming the large piece into the man's ribs the trio heard cracking sounds that made Corrin and Arjhan wince. A second later the man was gasping on the floor clutching at his side.

"Well then, that should take care of him," Harbek said as he shouldered his hammer.

"Take care of? You're lucky it doesn't kill him!" Corrin shouted as he walked over to Arjhan on the torturer's table. He produced a smaller knife and a short, metal rod from his sleeve before he set to work on the locks that held Arjhan's limbs in place.

"Where's your gear?" Harbek asked as he approached the dragonborn.

"I think it's in a chest over there," Arjhan nodded his snout toward a large box on the far side of the room. "I saw them put my belongings in there when they first brought me here, but I've been in and out of consciousness since then so they might've moved it,"

Harbek nodded and approached the chest, cracking the lock with his hammer he lifted the lid and sure enough found Arjhan's armor, sword, shield, and cloak thrown in the box in a large heap.

"Soldiers, bah, don't have any respect at all," Harbek said as he began to pull each item out and store it carefully on his person.

Arjhan dropped to the floor behind him with a loud thud as the last binding was released by Corrin.

"I don't believe we've been properly introduced," Arjhan said as Corrin deposited his tools and walked over to offer him a hand.

"Corrin, Corrin the Fleet, at your service," He said extending his hand, both as a shake and to help Arjhan up.

The dragonborn took it and was lifted to his feet, "Kimbatuul Arjhan, but my friends call me Arjhan,"

"Here," Harbek said as he approached and offered Arjhan his belongings in a neat pile. Arjhan thanked him as he took the gear and five minutes later he finished strapping his shield onto his arm.

"We're going to need to fight our way out of here at this rate, they'll have heard the commotion by now and if not they'll certainly suspect something when they see me up and about," Arjhan told his companions who nodded.

"Here, let me take care of something first," Harbek said as he approached Arjahn.

The fighter looked curious as Harbek pulled out his symbol and laid it upon Arjhan's chest.

"Father Moradin, I ask ye to please bless this man so tha this wounds may heal and enable him to fight alongside me," Harbek closed his eyes as he muttered the short prayer, and sure enough Arjhan felt a surge of relief hit him as his wounds closed.

"Extraordinary," he said as he clenching his hand and opening it, the scars from the whip were gone and he didn't feel any pressure from the action.

"The perks of having a Cleric by yer side, now come on, we need to get going,"

"Excuse me, but I'm going to have to ask you to please… take a seat,"

Harbek and Arjhan turned to see a woman standing in the doorway, she had long, platinum blonde hair that almost concealed two, elongated and pointed ears. She stood almost as tall as Arjhan, and wore a fine dress of dark blue with cyan sleeves and details, and in her right hand was a long staff that she had planted on the floorboards. She was leaning on her right leg with her free hand resting against her hip. Her piercing green eyes gave away her appearance of a young woman, her eyes seemed to radiate knowledge and things that had been long forgotten.

Corrin sighed as he lowered his arms. He'd been trying to get the other two to see the woman standing in the doorway and help him find another way out, but once the woman had spoken he knew it was too late. "You two really need to pay better attention to signals,"


	4. Times of Change

Black Dragons  
Chapter 4: Times of Change

Disclaimer: I do not own Dungeons & Dragons

The woman shifted her weight from one hip to the other and deftly tossed her staff into her other hand before raising an eyebrow at the trio standing stunned in the room.

"Listen boys, I know I'm pretty but this is getting a little ridiculous don't you think?" She asked calmly, a slight smirk appearing on her face.

Harbek and Arjhan recoiled as they came out of their stupor and Corrin sighed again.

"Alright lass, who might you be then?" Harbek asked.

Her smirk turned into a chilling smile before opening her mouth to reply: "My name is Sariel, I advise the Baron on matters regarding magic and the unnatural,"

"So you work for the Baron… have you come to recapture me?" Arjhan asked, gripping the handle of his sword tightly.

"No, I actually came to free you, but it seems these two have beaten me to it," she indicated Harbek and Corrin with two, long, outstretched fingers.

The three lost any hostility and were all immediately confused.

"What?"

"Oh yes, that daft old man has been mistreating me for years, he doesn't respect me for my knowledge or age, treating me like I'm just some wine-wench at a tavern. I've had enough of it, I was going to free you Kimbatuul Arjhan, before leaving and finding employment elsewhere,"

"That's all well and good, but… I guess I'm still a little lost," Corrin shrugged his shoulders as he asked.

"Oh, well, you see, he's convinced that your friend here is some enemy spy and wants information. I know better, I've seen your name in reports. An accomplished soldier, decorated at least a dozen times and always praised for your strength and honor,"

Arjhan's eyes glanced to the floor as she said all this,

"I assume you know why I left the military then Miss Sariel?"

"Oh yes, that terrible incident regarding Woodsedge?"

Arjhan nodded solemnly.

"Nothing but a fit of imperial jealousy and espionage," She said dismissively.

"What?"

"The General of the Empire? What was his name again? Oh it doesn't matter, he was reprimanded a few months ago, dishonorably discharged for ordering the slaughter and burning of a civilian village, and the blame that was solely placed on you has been allocated to him. You're a free man again, but I suppose that doesn't mean you'll go back anytime soon?"

Arjhan shook his head, "No, I have no intention of going back. Especially now, after being told my General was such a gutless coward and so easily inclined to acts as atrocious as that,"

Sariel gave a simple nod of her head, "Well, as much fun as this has been I think I'll be on my way,"

She turned to leave when Arjhan's head shot up, "Wait!"

She looked over her should at him expectantly.

"You said you're going to look for another place of employment? I'd like to hire you,"

"Really? And what might you have for someone like me?"

Arjhan smiled to himself, "I'd like to repay the Baron for the generous time he's given me while I've been here. You know the strength of his troops, the layout of his castle, and most importantly you are an Arcanist are you not?"

Sariel fully turned to face him again, "You're quite astute aren't you?"

"If you're looking to fight the Baron count me in, I've been meaning to have some words with him for weeks now," Harbek added.

Arjhan nodded his thanks to the priest before looking to Corrin.

"I thank you for your aid in my release Corrin, but I can understand if-"

"How much gold is in the baron's coffers, if I might ask," Corrin cut Arjhan off as he looked to Sariel.

She shifted her weight once again and considered his question. "I'd say a few thousand pieces at least, enough that should anyone happen upon it they'd be well off for a good while,"

Corrin nodded and looked to Arjhan, "Consider that my reward for the release, and anything else I happen to stumble upon and want and I'll help you deal with the Baron,"

"Now wait just a moment, I cannot condone any theft of goods on my watch, even if it is against someone as corrupt as the Baron," Arjhan told him.

"Oh, how else did you expect to pay me then?" Sariel asked, "I assumed you were going to take the gold from the coffers and use it as my reward as well,"

"Aye, your purse did seem a little empty to be hiring out," Harbek nodded an affirmation of this fact.

Arjhan looked between the three of them and sighed, "Fine, just this once I will allow it,"

Corrin and Sariel smiled before Arjhan stood tall and made his way toward the door. Sariel stepped aside and allowed him, Corrin, and Harbek to pass through. The group readied themselves at the top of the stairs before beginning the trek down.

"Oh, I should mention something that might be relevant to our little plan here," Sariel told them.

Arjhan continued his descent without looking up at her, "What might that be?"

"Before I came to free you I may have 'burned the bridge' with the Baron," her ears drooped a little and her cheeks turned a slight shade of pink, "One of my less regal moments I assure you,"

"What did you do lass?" Harbek asked.

"I may or may not have insulted the Baron's honor, tact, appearance, lineage, and general way he runs his castle,"

Corrin stopped in front of Sariel and turned to face her, the fact she was on a stair behind him made it even harder for him to look her in the eyes as he craned his neck back.

"You did what?!"

"As I said, one of my less regal moments,"

"So I can only assume the Baron has troops waiting outside the tower?" Arjhan asked.

"Yes, I would say as such,"

"If you knew that how did you plan to escape?" Corrin asked.

"Easily, I would have simply dipped into the feywild for a moment and appeared down on the grounds outside the castle with our friend there," she lifted a finger to point at Arjhan.

"And what about us?" Corrin asked.

"I didn't expect there to be anyone other than myself and Arjhan," Sariel explained simply.

Corrin's mouth opened to say something else before he snapped it shut.

"Sounds to me like we have a fight on our hands," Harbek said with a grin as he gave his hammer an experimental half-swing.

Arjhan nodded and drew his sword from it sheathe, examining the blade he nodded when he didn't find any defects in the metal, readying his shield he and his group continued down the stairs to eventually arrive at the door the tower.

"Is everyone ready?" He asked.

The group nodded and Arjhan turned to the door, lifting his foot he kicked it in, sending the wood splintering into the courtyard. He rushed out with Harbek, Corrin following behind them and Sariel gracefully stepping into the doorway.

Sure enough they found themselves surrounded by armed soldiers pointing halberds at them. One of them stood apart from the rest, he was a good head taller than the others but thinner in build. His scale armor shone in the sunlight and the shield on his back and the sword on his belt gave him the appearance of a warrior. His helmet, gleaming in the sun, bore an emblem that Harbek, Sariel, and Corrin recognized as the Baron's mark. He stared at the group before opening his mouth to speak.

"Kimbatuul Arjhan, Harbek Steadhammer, Corrin 'The Fleet', and Lady Sariel of Masmith, you are hereby under arrest on the authority of the Baron. As you can see, you are surrounded, so come quietly and no one has to get hurt,"

"I don't think we'll be going quietly Aldain," Sariel called from the back, "You've seen what I can do, and I'm sure you have an idea of what these boys are capable of, so I suggest you stand down and let us go about our business,"

The leader, Aldain, gritted his teeth and scowled at them "And what business might that be?"

"I'd like to have a few words with the Baron, nothing lethal I assure you," Arjhan answered.

Aldain turned his gaze to focus on Arjhan, "You will not have such a chance. This is your last warning: Stand down or be taken by force,"

Arjhan gripped his sword and raised the point, lifting his shield so that only his eyes peered above the top to stare at Aldain. The man sighed and released the scowl on his face, drawing his blade and he pointed at the group.

"So be it, men! Arrest them!"

The soldiers began to sidle forward, making sure that the heads of their halberds were kept a good distance in front of them. Arjhan looked to his team and saw that Harbek and Corrin had already taken up positions on his left and right. Sariel meanwhile finished preparing a spell in her hand before lobbing a crystal-blue sphere of magic into the line of soldiers in front of Arjhan. The sphere hit the helmet of one of the soldiers and exploded sending ice shards out in all directions, the soldiers lifted their arms to protect their faces from the ensuing blast.

"Go!" Sariel shouted to Arjhan who nodded, stepping forward he slashed his sword through one of the soldiers and across the chest of another, downing both of them. The others, recovering from the surprise attack thrust their halberds at Arjhan, he used his sword to knock the weapon aside and while the man was lunging forward he caught a hit to the face from Arjhan's shield sending him reeling. Two other soldiers managed to cut Arjhan on his sides, he grunted his way through the pain as his armor absorbed most of the blow. Suddenly his armor began to glow dimly with a faint aura, taking a glance over his shoulder he saw Harbek down a man and a similar aura overcome him as well. Corrin meanwhile had lunged forward past the Halberds, dipping his head low he dashed past the weapons and into the legs of the men who were wielding them. Lodging one of his knives into the man's calf he yelled in pain as he clutched at the wound and dropped. Corrin simply strengthened his grip on the weapon so as the man fell it dislodged itself, turning to his team he almost caught a halberd swing to the neck but ducked it quickly. Sariel was preparing another spell in her hands, a purple, icy-spear.

Aldain meanwhile shrugged his shield off his back and charged into the fray, as he approached Arjhan he shouted at one of his men "Follow me!" The soldier nodded and followed Aldain as he charged the dragonborn. Aldain lifted his sword above his head and brought it down in a powerful, overhead blow that Arjhan barely managed to catch on his shield, but while he was distracted the soldier who'd followed Aldain swung at Arjhan from behind, but he found his blade was caught by the aura that was currently surrounding Arjhan, seeing the attempted double attack Arjhan summoned the strength to knock Aldain away and kicked the man's Halberd haft so it spun out of the man's hands and away into the courtyard.

Backing up Arjhan, Corrin, and Harbek took another look at their situation and realized that there were only a handful of soldiers left.

"You two go left, I'll take care of the right and Aldain," Arjhan said.

The two nodded and Corrin turned and leapt onto Harbek's shoulders, throwing the dwarf off balance as he sprung into the air, descending on one of the two remaining soldiers on that side he cut the man's chest with a quick flourish of his blade before leaping back just in time to avoid the other's halberd thrust. Recovering from the sudden spring-board Harbek grabbed his hammer and brought it around in a powerful side-blow that cracked a few of the soldier's ribs. He dropped to the ground clutching at his side while Harbek and Corrin turned to face the two soldiers behind them, catching a glimpse of Arjhan as he cut through the disarmed soldier and into Aldain's armor.

Sariel meanwhile had finished preparing her spell and shouted at Arjhan "Stand aside, I've got him!"

Arjhan, hearing her voice and having an idea of what she had planned quickly backed away, Sariel threw her purple javelin of ice at Aldain who, not expecting the attack, took it in the chest. It exploded in a flash leaving Aldain dazed and reeling from the blow. His ears ringing and his vision blurred and leaving after-images as he tried to shake his head he couldn't bring himself to do much other than take a poorly attempted swing at Arjhan who dodged the attack with ease and knocked away Aldain's blade with his shield, the force of the hit and his dazed state knocked Aldain to his knees. Harbek and Corrin finished off the last two soldiers, leaving them surrounded by a ring of groaning and bleeding men. Arjhan held his blade down in front of Aldain's face.

His vision recovered and Aldain immediately noticed the blade in front of him.

"Go ahead," he said simply.

"No, I refuse to kill someone like this," Arjhan replied as he sheathed his sword and offered Aldain a hand up.

"What?"

"I saw the way you could command men into battle, even when they knew they were outmatched. That ability of leadership is rare and shouldn't be wasted," Arjhan told him.

Aldain took his offered arm and Arjhan helped him up.

"Come with us," Arjhan told him.

"What? You'd expect me to betray my lord?" Aldain asked.

"I expect you to make your own decision," Arjhan said as he let go of Aldain's arm.

He considered it for a moment, seeing that he was clearly outmatched and now outnumbered, his mind flashed to the aftermath of this attack: A bloodied and beaten baron scolding him for his carelessness and inability to do his job, perhaps he'd be fired or dishonorably discharged from all military service. With a shake of his head Aldain came out of his day-dream.

"I'll do it," he said with a smile.

Arjhan clasped his free hand on his shoulder "Good man,"

Corrin approached and offered Aldain his sword, which he took with a nod of his head and sheathed the blade on his belt. Placing his shield on his back he lifted his helmet and looked at the emblem of the baron's that was emblazoned upon its surface. He threw it aside with a huff and at that point everyone noticed the slightly pointed ears that were poking out from Aldain's hair.

"You're an elf?" Corrin asked.

"Half-Elf," Aldain and Sariel replied together.

"It doesn't matter," Arjhan said to his companion who shrugged.

"Long as I get paid he could be a troll, was just making an observation is all," Corrin replied.

The group proceeded to gather up the soldiers and tie them off with some rope Arjhan had in his pack, leaving their halberds beside them. Once they were finished they made their way to the center structure that marked the Baron's offices and dwelling. Aldain also informed them that he had taken all of the guards currently positioned at the castle, except for the Baron's personal guards, to arrest them.

The group entered the center structure and immediately found themselves in the Baron's court chamber. Here he presided over the fief and any legal matters such as convictions and disputes were settled here. Aldain led the way to the left side wall where a doorway led to the stairs that would take them up to the Baron's personal quarters. The group ascended the stairs as quietly as they could, and eventually they reached a landing at the very top of the stairs. Two soldiers in full-plate armor were standing at attention when they approached. They drew their blades when they saw Arjhan not bound and looked at Aldain for an explanation.

"Stand aside, we're here to speak with the Baron," Arjhan told them.

The two looked to each other and then back to the group, readjusting their grips.

Arjhan sighed before inhaling deeply and releasing a blast of green liquid from his maw. The two men shouted in surprise before the rancid smell of acid-melted metal began to fill the corridor.

"Come on, that won't do much but surprise them," Arjhan said as he led the way past the two panicking soldiers who were tossing off their pieces of armor in a frantic speed.

Arjhan approached the door and lifted his foot, kicking it in the door flew off the hinges and landed with a dull _thud_ on the floor of the baron's office. The man looked up to see Arjhan, Aldain, Corrin, Harbek, and Sariel enter.

"Do not worry Baron, we're not here to kill you, we only wish to talk," Arjhan told him.

The Baron sighed as he dropped the pen he was holding on his desk and stood, the group noticed the sword dangling from his belt.

"That's unfortunate, as we have no intention of talking with spies," He said glaring up at them. The clanking of armor alerted the group to soldiers that lined the room, each of them wearing gleaming plate armor and wielding a sword.

"Seems this isn't going to be a civil conversation," Sariel said as she readied her staff.


End file.
